It was always a case of so near yet so far for ace Indian cueist Aditya Mehta in his nearly a decade-long career and the seasoned journeyman said he surprised himself as he graduated from bronze to gold at the World Games in Cali, recently.

India`s numero uno snooker player, Aditya Mehta remained on course to win a gold medal in the ongoing World Games after securing a hard-fought victory against pre-tournament favourite Perry Raymond in the quarterfinals of the quadrennial event at Cali, Columbia.